Wire carrying case



. Oct. i4, 1958 R.A. BRUCE WIRE CARRYING CASE 5 Sheets-Sheet 14 Filed Feb. 2 8, 1956 R. A. BRUCE WIRE CARRYING cAs oct. 14, 1595s 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 23, 1956 R. A. BRUCE WIRE CARRYING CASE oca 14,1958

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WWE CARRYEG CASE Application February 28, 1956, Serial No. 568,211

l1 Claims. (Cl. 220 19) This invention relates to carrying cases and is adapted for carrying many articles or containers such as, for example, cardboard milk cartons, milk bottles, and the like.

Open wire-work carrying cases have certain advantages over closed cases formed of metal or wood. Generally speaking, wire cases are lighter and provide for better circulation of air, so that the contents of the case may be quickly refrigerated. The disadvantages of wire cases are that they do not provide suicient protection for the contents and, further, that they are not sufficiently sturdy to stand the severe service to which such cases are normally subjected.

For example, the corners of wire cases, particularly in the dairy industry, are subjected to severe blows from moving dolly trucks or two-wheel trucks in the dairy and from the overriding of one frame Wire on another when traveling on roller or chain conveyors, particularly when being conveyed around corners. Sometimes the cases are subjected to the pressure of 200 to 500 cases traveling on the conveyor. The cases are stopped while loading a case with milk or other articles and, as the conveyor travels continuously, it naturally tends to force the cases to move which builds up considerable pressure and may cause breakdown of the vertical wires between the bottom wire ring and the rst middle ring. When such cases are provided with sheet metal corners, this pressure also bends the sheet metal which sometimes results in damage to the contents of the case.

Also when sheet metal corners are used, if the sheet metal corner becomes bent so that there is a sharp edge present, it may damage the carton which is adjacent the sheet metal corner. Also the sharp edge may shear oif the parailin of a cardboard container and if this occurs the container may leak. Furthermore, as stated, such a sharp corner is a hazard to the person handling the case. The cases in the present invention eliminate all of the foregoing disadvantages.

It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide an open wire-work carrying case which is exceptionally sturdy and which may be placed on moving conveyors without damaging the contents of the case.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved open wire-work carrying case in which novel solid corner members are provided.

It is another object of the invention to provide such a carrying case which is adapted to be placed upon a moving conveyor and which will prevent overriding of one case with respect to adjacent cases.

It is an additional object of the invention to provide a carrying case of the open wire-work type in which bending and disconnection of the vertical wires is virtually eliminated even when the carrying cases are placed on a moving conveyor and push each other along.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an open wire-work carrying case which has sheet metal corner members for protection of articles in the case at the corners and wherein the sheet metal corner members are Patented Get. 14, 1958 so designed that there is no likelihood of sharp edges being present which might damage adjoining cases or their contents or persons handling the cases.

Another important object of the invention is to provide an open wire carrying case having vertically extending sheet metal corner members which overlie and are secured to certain vertical wires of the carrying case to add strength and rigidity to the corners and to the case as a whole.

It is also an object of the invention to provide an open wire carrying case wherein some of the vertical wires are offset to prevent damage to the contents of the cases when placed on a conveyor and, further, to provide such a carrying case with sheet metal corner members in such a manner that the outermost horizontally extending portions of the carrying case lie in the same plane.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a carrying case of the open wire-work type which is provided with reinforced vertical sheet metal corner members and, further, to provide such corner members which do not extend the full vertical distance of the case.

With these and other objects in view, my invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of my device whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a perspective view of the carrying case constructed in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is an elevational view of the carrying case shown in Figure 1 Figure 3 is a sectional view of the carrying case shown in Figure 2 taken on line 3 3 thereof;

Figure 4 is a sectional view of the carrying case shown in Figure 3 taken on line 4 4 thereof;

Figure 5 is a sectional view of the carrying case shown in Figure 4 taken on line 5 5 thereof;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a carrying case constructed in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention;

Figure 7 is a sectional view of the carrying case shown in Figure 6 taken on line 7 7 thereof; and

Figure 8 is a sectional view of the carrying case shown in Figure 6 taken on line 8 8 thereof.

Referring specitically to the drawings for a detailed description of the rst embodiment of the invention, numeral 1 designates generally an open wire-work carrying case which is adapted for carrying a wide variety of articles but which is particularly adapted for carrying cardboard milk cartons which are generally rectangular in shape. Numeral 2 designates a horizontal substantially rectangular shaped top ring, numeral 3 a similarly shaped upper intermediate ring, numeral 4 a similarly shaped bottom ring, and numeral 5 a lower intermediate ring of similar shape, all of the rings being formed preferably from round wire stock. The upper and lower rings 2 and 4 are sometimes referred to as perimeter frame Wires and the wires 2, 3, 4 and 5 are of congruent shape.

Wires 6 preferably bent to the shape shown best in Figures l and 2-extend vertically on all four sides of the case and are secured preferably by welding to the horizontal wires 2, 3, 4 and 5. Two vertically extending hairpin wires 7 are disposed at the corners of the case in the position shown in Figures l and 2 and are likewise preferably welded to the horizontal wires 2, 3, 4 and 5.

Three or more horizontal base supporting wires 8, 9 and 10 are positioned across the bottom of the case and are preferably welded to the lower ring 4. The wires 8, 9 and 10 may be slotted to receive, or welded to, flat wires 11, as shown in Figures l, 2 and 3, the wires 1i being welded to the bottom perimeter wire 4 and being 3 bent slightly downwardly at the ends thereof for this purpose, as best shown in Figure 5.

A stacking ring 12 is welded to the horizontal wires 8, 9 and 10 in a manner `.similar to'that shown-in my.V

Patent No. 2,512,517.

The vertical wires 6 are bentfoutwardly, Aas shown at 13, preferably on two sides of the case 1, although they may be bent outwardly on all four sides. Thebend forms a channel-shaped portion indicated by the numeral ,25. The purpose of the channel-shaped bending of the wires 6 at the bottom thereof between the bottom perimeter wire 4 and the lower intermediate wire 5 is to give protection and strength to' this partof thecase, since it is the part which is in contact with adjacent cases on a conveyor and also to prevent overriding of one case with respect to the next. In other words, the rings 4 of the cases tend to slide up on each other but the bends 13 prevent such overriding; As shown in Figure 1, the upright wire members 6 may be straight on two .sides of the case, as designated by the numeral 20, since the cases are placed on the conveyor and only two sides are in contact with adjacent cases.

The vertical wire members 7 are also .bent outwardly as shown at 13, with the bends again forming achannelshaped portion indicated by the numeral 25. However, all of the upright wire members 7 are ypreferably provided with the bends 13 so that, as explained hereinafter, they will follow the contour of sheet metal corner members 21.

As stated, portions of the case 1 are preferably welded together and, as best shown in Figure 4, the welds are designated by the numbers 14, 15 and Y16 for 'securing the vertically spaced rings 2, 3 and 5, respectively, to .the .upright wire members 6 and 7. ln addition, the bottom perimeter wire 4 is welded at 17 and 18 to lthebottom of wire members 6 and 7 and to the cross members 1&1, respectively, and the wire 4 is welded to the bottom round wire 8 at 19.

Four L-shaped sheet metal corner members are provided for tbe case 1 and are shown generally at 21. The corner members 21 are provided with an outwardly turned flange 22 so that a portion 23 extends outwardly from the main portion of the corner member 21 yin the same plane as the main portion. As best shown in Figures 4 and 5, the bottom of the sheet metal 21 is turned under as shown at 26 and extends between the upper surface of the bottom perimeter wire 4 and the bottom of the lower portion of the bend 13 of the upright wire members 7.

Referring now to Figures 6, 7 and 8 for a detailed description of the second embodiment of the invention, it is rst to be noted that the .casing is formed in substantially the same manner as the casing of the rst embodiment, except that the vertical wires are not provided with any outwardly projecting bend or channel and the corner pieces are formed with strengthening corrugations. in Figures 6, 7 and 8, the casing is generally indicated by the numeral 31 and comprises congruent lhorizontally spaced rings 32, 33, 34 and 35, the rings 32 and 34 forming the upper and lower perimeter rings, respective ly, and the rings 33 and 35 forming the upper and lower intermediate rings, respectively. Upright side wire members are shown at 36 and upright corner vertical wire members are shown at 37. A base supporting member in Figure 4 is shown at 33 in Figure 7, it being understood that three or more such members may be provided as in the first embodiment. The base wire member 38 is welded to the bottom perimeter ring 34 as shown at 39. Cross members 41 are secured to the casing in the same manner as the corresponding cross members`11 are secured in Figure l. A stacking ring which is Welded to the base members 38 is shown at 42.

The casing is welded together and welds 44, 45 and 46 connect the upright members 36 and 37 to the horizontal members 32, 33 and 35, respectively, while weld 47 connects the bottom of the upright members to the lower perimeter ring 34. L-shaped sheet metal corner members are shown generally by numeral 51 and are provided with a groove 52 by which the intermediate horizontal member 35 is partially encompassed. Vertical corrugations 53 are provided inV the lower portion of the corner members 51 to add strength thereto and to stop overriding of cases on conveyors and the like, it being obvious that such corrugations could be placed in the upper portion thereof if so desired.

It is noted that the lower intermediate horizontal wire 35 is ofsmaller. diameter than the wires 32, 33 and 34 so that even when the corner members 51 are grooved at 52, the vertical plane of the horizontal wires, the corrugation 53, and the groove 52 all lie in substantially the same vertical plane. The horizontal intermediate lower wire 35 is of smaller diametertthan the other horizontal wires 32, 33 and V34 so that the .outermost projecting surface of the horizontal wires and the sheet metal corners all lie in substantially the same plane.

VItis obvious that thecarrying cases as herein described are exceptionally sturdy, havesolid corners which protect the contents of the case at thecorners, are constructed so as to 'prevent overriding, and to prevent sharp edges of the corner pieces being deformed and bent into contact either with the contents of the casing or with the person handling the casing. Furthermore, the corner members are reinforced by being secured to upright wire members and there is little likelihood of any upright wire members being .broken loose from their welds.

Some changes may be made in `the construction and arrangement of the parts of my `device without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention tocover by my claims any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter .frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright wires secured `tosaidperimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form `an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion adjacent the lower part of the case on at least two sides thereof, and sheet metal corner `members secured to some .of the upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being bent to` conform to said channel-shaped portions of said upright wires.

2. -In an `open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright corner wires secured to said .perimeter frame wires, upright wires intermediate of the corners also secured to said perimeter frame wires, said corner frame wires being bent lto form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion adjacent the lower part of the case on at least two sides thereof, and sheet metal corner members secured to said corner wires, said sheet metal corner members being bent to conform to said ychannel-shaped portions of said upright wires.

3. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangularshape `with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, an intermediate perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantialy congruent shapes, upright wires secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion on at least two sides of the case between, the lower perimeter frame .wire and the intermediate perimeter frame wire, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being shaped to conform with the outwardly extending channel-shaped portions of said upright wires.

4. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, an intermediate perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright corner wires secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, upright wires intermediate of the corner wires also secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion on at least two sides of the case between the lower perimeter frame wire and the intermediate perimeter frame wire, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being shaped to conform with the outwardly extending channel-shaped portions of said upright wires.

5. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, an intermediate perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright corner wires secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, upright wires intermediate of the corner wires also secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion on at least two sides of the case between the lower perimeter frame wire and the intermediate perimeter frame wire, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being shaped to conform with the outwardly extending channelshaped portions of said upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being turned in below the lower bend of the channel in the upright wires.

6. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, an intermediate perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright corner wires secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, upright wires intermediate of the corner wires also secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion on at least two sides of the case between the lower perimeter frame wire and the intermediate perimeter frame wire, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being shaped to conform with the outwardly extending channelshaped portions of said upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being turned in below the lower bend of the channel in the upright wires and above said lower perimeter frame wire.

7. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, an intermediate perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright wires secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion on at least two sides of the case between the lower perimeter frame wire and the intermediate perimeter frame wire, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, said sheet metal corner members being shaped to conform with the outwardly extending channel-shaped portions of said upright wires, the intermediate perimeter frame wire being of less diameter than the lower perimeter frame wire.

8. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, spaced upper and lower intermediate perimeter frame wires, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright wires secured to at least the upper and lower perimeter frame wires, at least some of said upright wires being bent to form an outwardly extending channel-shaped portion on at least two sides of the case between the lower intermediate perimeter frame wire and the lower perimeter frame wire, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires and extending between the upper intermediate perimeter frame wire and the lower perimeter frame wire, said sheet metal corner members being bent adjacent the lower intermediate perimeter frame wire to conform with the channel-shaped portions of the upright wires adjacent the corners of the case.

9. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright wires secured to said perimeter frame wires, and sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, at the corners of the case, said `sheet metal corner members being provided with vertical, outwardly extending corrugations, with the outer surface of said corrugations lying in a plane ush with the outer surfaces `of the perimeter wires.

10. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright wires secured to said perimeter frame wires, sheet metal corner members secured to some of the upright wires, at the corners of the case, said sheet metal corner members being provided with vertical, outwardly extending corrugations and horizontal corrugations, with the outer `surface of the vertical corrugations lying in a plane flush with the outer surfaces of the perimeter wires, and an intermediate horizontal frame wire also secured to said sheet metal corner members and seated in said horizontal corrugations.

11. In an open wire-work carrying case of generally rectangular shape with an open top, an upper perimeter frame wire, a lower perimeter frame wire, said frame wires being of substantially congruent shapes, upright wires secured to said perimeter frame wires, sheet metal corner members secured to -some of the upright wires, at the corners of the case, said sheet metal corner members being provided with vertical, outwardly extending corrugations with the outer surface of said corrugations lying in a plane substantially flush with the outer surfaces of the perimeter wires, and an intermediate horizontal frame wire also secured to said sheet metal corner members, said intermediate frame wire being of smaller diameter than the upper and lower perimeter frame wires and said sheet metal corner members being bent to partially encompass said intermediate frame wire.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,104,096 Beatty et al. July 21, 1914 1,865,533 Lutzke July 5, 1932 2,733,828 Averill Feb. 7, 1956 2,756,896 Hitz Iuly 3l, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 693,140 Great Britain June 24, 1953 

